Rocco Baldelli in 'comfortable' place

Rocco Baldelli seems at peace with the fact his baseball career was cut short by a mystery illness. That doesn't mean that the former Tampa Bay Ray and Boston Red Sox outfielder and designated hitter doesn't occasionally get frustrated and saddened by the premature end to his major league career.

Rocco Baldelli seems at peace with the fact his baseball career was cut short by a mystery illness. That doesn't mean that the former Tampa Bay Ray and Boston Red Sox outfielder and designated hitter doesn't occasionally get frustrated and saddened by the premature end to his major league career.

Baldelli visited Fall River on Friday, speaking to the Rhode Island Thieves (ages 10-11) AAU baseball team at the Kupiecs' "Inside The Park" batting cages on Plymouth Avenue. Baldelli was a guest of Swansea native Tom Tanous, Director of Amateur Scouting for the New York Mets. Tanous' son Sam plays for the Thieves.

Baldelli, 30, played eight seasons in the major leagues, all but one with Tampa, before a still undiagnosed malady that caused him fatigue and muscle injuries prompted him to retire at age 29. In his new career, the former honor student at Bishop Hendricken High School of is Special Assistant, Baseball Operations for the Rays.

"Sometimes I do think about it," said the former first-round draft choice who was considering Princeton and Wake Forest before signing with Tampa Bay. "It does make me a little sad from time to time. I loved going out there and playing and performing. I took a lot of pride in what I did.

"But really there was nothing else that I thought I could do to stay out there and keep playing, so I'm pretty comfortable with where I am at right now. And I'm happy."

Baldelli played with Tampa from 2003-2008, and his two-run home in Game 3 and RBI single in Game 7 helped the Rays to beat the Red Sox in the American League Championship Series.

He played with Boston in 2009 before returning to the Rays in 2010, his final season.

Baldelli spoke to the young players about a baseball work ethic, underscoring his point and getting the kids' attention by using Boston star Dustin Pedroia as an example.

Baldelli said that in his season with the Sox he would arrive at Fenway park for a 7 p.m. game at about 1:30 p.m. and find Pedroia already in uniform. "I thought this guy's a lunatic," Baldelli said.

He said Pedroia would have someone toss balls to him for batting practice., would hit again in the cages before batting practice, would take the formal on-field BP, and then would head back to the park's indoor cage for more swings before the game. That was four episodes of batting practice before playing the game, something Pedroia would do at full speed.

Page 2 of 2 -
"I never saw him not run as hard as he could," Baldelli said. "When you're playing 200 games, that's hard."

It's also the way Baldelli played, something which made his forced retirement so difficult to take. Baldelli said the ailment never has been diagnosed.

"I've gotten to see a lot of doctors, especially when I was playing still, or trying to play," he said. "Never came to an exact diagnosis. But I feel pretty good right now and I'm going to continue to maybe try and do what I can to find out what it is that is actually going on in my body and hopefully some day find that answer."

If that answer should come fast, could that mean a comeback from the Woonsocket Rocket?

"I don't think so," he said with a smile. "I'm pretty comfortable where I'm at."